Thirteen Things about CAMELS
I admit to a fascination with camels and have come across them in many places through Asia and Africa and also Australia.
1. Camels are even-toed ungulates within the genus Camelus. The dromedary, one-humped or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the Bactrian camel has two humps. They are native to the dry desert areas of western Asia, and central and east Asia, respectively.
2. Camels have the reputation of being bad-tempered and obstinate creatures who spit and kick. In reality, they tend to be good-tempered, patient and intelligent. The moaning and bawling sound they make when they’re loaded up and have to rise to their feet is like the grunting and heavy breathing of a weight-lifter in action, not a sign of displeasure at having to do some work. Note – some do have bad breath!
3. Camels come in every shade of brown, from cream to almost black.
4. A camel’s ears are small. It has acute hearing. A camel’s ears are lined with fur to filter out sand and dust blowing into the ear canal.
5. Contrary to popular belief, a camel does not store water in its hump. It is in fact a mound of fatty tissue from which the animal draws energy when food is hard to find. When a camel uses its hump fat for sustenance, the mound becomes flabby and shrinks. If a camel draws too much fat, the small remaining lump will flop from it’s upright position and hang down the camel’s side. Food and a few days’ rest will return the hump to its normal firm condition.
6. Camels have broad, flat, leathery pads with two toes on each foot. When the camel places its foot on the ground the pads spread, preventing the foot from sinking into the sand. When walking, the camel moves both feet on one side of its body, then both feet on the other. This gait suggests the rolling motion of a boat, explaining the camel’s ’ship of the desert’ nickname.
7. A camel’s eyes are large, with a soft, doe-like expression. They are protected by a double row of long curly eyelashes that also help keep out sand and dust, while thick bushy eyebrows shield the eyes from the desert sun. Their eyelashes are very long and quite sexy actually! See the photo below – I got quite close and had a bird’s eye view.
8. After a gestation periods of 13 months, a camel cow usually bears a single calf. The calves walk within hours of birth, and remain close to their mothers until they reach maturity at five years of age. The normal life span of a camel is 40 years, although a working camel retires from active duty at 25.
9. Wild dromedaries are long extinct. Wild Bactrian camels still survive in the Gobi desert (between China and Mongolia), but they are endangered, the population being under 1,000. This wild Bactrian camels are not the race from which the domestic form comes. That type is believed to be extinct now in the wild. There are also wild camels in central and western Australia. They were released into the wild when they were no longer required as beasts of burden and have successfully bred. The camels I rode in Queensland were captured wild from central Australia and broken to saddle.
10. The camel’s mouth, stomach, and teeth have all developed to allow it to eat plants that are not palatable to other desert animals. The camel’s mouth is tough and rubbery so that thorns and branches won’t damage it. The thirty-four sharp teeth allow it to bite off tough bites of almost anything, and when forage is short a camel can subsist on meats, skin and bones. Camels are ruminants, similar to cows, with three stomachs. They don’t chew their food. They eat by swallowing their food whole and allowing it to be partially digested by the stomachs before being chewed as a cud later.
11. Throughout recorded history, the camel has been a helper to the desert dwellers. The camel assisted in providing transportation, shelter, fuel and food. The camel is able to carry loads as heavy as 900 pounds, although normally a camel will only carry a third of that. Camels were used on the Silk Road.
12. Fossil evidence indicates that the ancestors of modern camels evolved in North America during the Palaeogene period, and later spread to Asia. Humans first domesticated camels between 3,500–3,000 years ago.
13. This photo was taken in the Western Desert of Egypt.
This photo was taken near the St Simeon Monastery, Aswan, Egypt.
And this final photo of a pretty white camel was taken in Algeria – the Sahara Desert.
I’ve used some of my camel riding experiences in Wanderlust. Anna and her passengers go for a camel ride from the desert town of Jaiselmer in India. This ride was from personal experience and I remember having a sore ass afterwards and well into the next day. I wasn’t the only one who was walking like a duck either!
The camel I rode this particular time was called Michael Jackson and had a small plastic horn tied onto its saddle. This seems to be a very common name since the donkey I rode up to the Valley of the Kings in Egypt was also called Michael Jackson.
Have you ridden a camel? If so, whereabouts? Would you like to ride a camel?
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others’ comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
Tweet This Post
My guest today is 
